Moksa, Central Sq

Moksa – 450 Massachusetts Ave Cambridge, Massachusetts 02139

Oh hi! Its been a while, I know. That’s what a new, demanding job will do to you. Don’t get me wrong, I have continued to go out and eat my way through the city, take food photos, make notes, and write up drafts, but the sitting down and cleaning them up part has been something I am struggling with. Ok, enough about me, lets talk about stuffing our faces at Moksa in Central Sq.

I was stoked (stoked? Who am I?) when Moksa opened up in Central Sq last year. Having lived in Central Sq for years its fantastic to see all these new places popping up. We paid a visit to Moksa a couple of months after they opened and were looking forward to a few cocktails and nibbles after work. It was fairly nice out so we sat outside and kept sitting there for what seemed like forever until someone came over to take our drink order. I got the Peking Sailor which is Hendricks Gin, Campari, Elderflower Vinegar, Bubbly and Cucumber (they had me at Gin and Bubbly). The drink was ok, not sure it was my favorite thing ever (I switched to wine right after) but how it was served was hilarious. I don’t think it was meant to be ironically funny but when the waitress came out with these big glasses brimming with umbrellas and tchotchkes (thanks for the spell check, BL!) I couldn’t help but blush and look around hoping no one had seen the ridiculous cocktail I was about to drink. I mean, we are two women in their 30s in Central Sq, not at Senor Frogs on Spring Break in Cancun. I understand how many may like this sort of attention but it’s just not our thing. After much giggling we moved on to the menu and waited for our waitress again.

We decided to share a few small plates starting with the Vietnamese Spring Roll with Cilantro-Lime Sauce. This dish was delivered to the wrong table but eventually found its way to us. The Spring Rolls were pretty simple, fresh and overall pretty good, probably the best thing we ordered.

Next we got the Thai Green Papaya and Mango Salad with Peanuts, Mint & Chili Lime dressing. Unfortunately neither of us were really a fan of this one. It was a little bland and the peanuts on the soft side which didn’t add that crunch we were hoping for. Next.

I had the highest hopes for this next dish, the Popcorn Shrimp with Spicy Remoulade. If you know me at all you know I always lean towards shrimp dishes whether they are fried, buffaloed (yes, I am making that a verb), grilled, tossed with pasta, however you want to make them I will eat them. I’m pretty much the white nerdy version of Bubba from Forrest Gump.  Anyways, popcorn shrimp is one of my favorites and adding remoulade to any fried food makes it a baller dish, I could eat that shit by the spoonful.

The remoulade was fantastic but the shrimp were super dry. They were on a small salad that added some moisture but then they sat on top of another dry bready thing. Too much breading on the shrimp which contributed to the dryness. Pass me my recockulous cocktail to get this to go down, please.

We wrapped up the night with the Vegetarian Fried Rice with Carrots, Onion & Sake Shoyu. Totally fine but nothing to write home about.

After dinner we sat with empty glasses for over 20 minutes before we got up and went inside to ask them if we could pay. Can we please pay? Please? We’d like to give you money. Okthanks.

Needless to say, we weren’t fans of the service or food. I’ve heard the dance club in the back is decent and recently had a friend who got the bartender to swap shoes with her so she could go in (no flip-flops allowed) which has boosted my opinion but I think I’ll be going down the road for food in the future.

How did Moksa measure up? 2 Spoons!

Oak Long Bar and Kitchen, Back Bay

Where: Oak Long Bar and Kitchen – 138 St James Ave, Boston, MA

One of the many benefits of my day job is that I get to work with the Fairmont Copley Plaza on our annual gala. The gala is a blast to plan and has gone off without a hitch (or at least appeared to have which is the important part) and looked beautiful the past two years. This year my contact at the Fairmont Copley suggested I meet her for lunch at the hotel restaurant, the Oak Long Bar and Kitchen, to discuss set up and the details of the event. I quickly agreed as this is so my kind of working lunch. I hadn’t been to the restaurant since it was the Oak Room and had only been for drinks so it was like trying a completely new restaurant. Well, it basically is.

Lunch was not only very productive but also very delicious. I had the Organic Mushroom Flatbread with roasted garlic, wild arugula and a fried egg. I don’t know why all pizzas / flatbreads aren’t served with a fried egg, such a good addition. It reminds me of being in France, they throw a fried egg on everything- pizzas, burgers, fries… you name it. The mushroom flatbread was an excellent choice – salty, cheesy, light, and the crust gave good bite. I’ve had a soft spot for anything mushroom since I was a little girl and, in fact, refused to eat anything other than toast and mushrooms for a good year which must have driven my parents nuts.

I didn’t think I would be able to finish my flatbread as its generously portioned but it wasn’t as heavy as I had thought it would be (or I am pretending it wasn’t so I don’t feel like such a fattie) so I did. Bravo, me.

[Btw, no, that’s not a wine glass stem you see in the photo. I would never drink during a working lunch, that would be totally inappropriate and unprofessional. I just like drinking my ice tea in a wine glass….]

My lunch date insisted I try the whoopie pie for dessert so I, reluctantly (ha!), agreed to split it with her. It was an ice cream whoopie pie, chocolate on chocolate. You all know I love my chocolate but I am actually not a fan of chocolate ice cream for whatever reason so had wished it was vanilla (or caramel? or anything but chocolate really) but I can see how anyone else would have been drooling over this. I do love the side of milk- very cute!

Overall, it was a lovely lunch with great service. The menu is nice and short and everything delivered on its promises of tastiness. Can we host another event at the Fairmont Copley, please?

How did Oak Long Bar and Kitchen measure up? 4 Spoons!

Giulia, Harvard / Porter Sq

Where: Giulia– 1682 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge, MA 02138

After reading about Giulia on one of those “hot new restaurant” lists, I quickly made a reservation to go with OZT. Excellent. I had a week to pine over the menu and figure out a tactic to convince her to share a few different items with me, which it turned out was just waiting for her to make the suggestion. Great minds think alike.

Giulia is conveniently (for me) located between Porter and Harvard Squares in the old space where Rafiki briefly lived. The layout is similar but with an additional built up seating area (watch your step), open kitchen, large pasta / dining table at the back and more rustic charm. Our server told us that if you walk by Giulia during the day around 3:30 you can peek in and see the chef making all the pasta from scratch on this big table. Not sure I could resist joining if I ever caught that.

We were quickly seated and greeted by our server. He poured over the menu describing half of the menu items in great detail while we stifled our giggles at explanations of fairly well known items like “lardo”.

“I still don’t understand this trend in restaurants to have the server describe each item on the menu in flowery detail. One or two items to point out fine, but if you don’t want me to read the menu for myself don’t give me one! I could have taken a nap in the time he took to finish!” – OZT.

After we were left to look over the menu, he came back and told us that he “didn’t want to previously tell us about this other item but is now ready to…”. Um, why didn’t he want to tell us before?! Did he think we weren’t worthy of knowing? Was he watching us to make sure we were sophisticated enough? Why was it some big secret?

We started with the Bruschetta with tuscan kale with house made ricotta and chilies. The bruschetta looked gorgeous with the deep green kale and bright white ricotta with little specks of chili oil. Sadly, the Bruschetta didn’t taste as vibrant as it looked – it was pretty bland. We couldn’t taste any heat, zing, or seasoning from the chilies. Nada. Salt helped a little but the Bruschetta were definitely missing something.

We then shared two pasta plates – the lobster agnolotti (umbrian truffles, chives and lobster brodetto) and pappardelle with wild boar (black trumpet, juniper and aged parmigiano), the latter being highly recommended by our server.

The lobster agnolotti, which were like little tortellinis, came out in a delicate broth and looked divine. I couldn’t wait to get in there so I started with this one before we did the midway swap. I was pretty disappointed to find that the lobster flavor was very, very mild. I likely wouldn’t have been able to distinguish the lobster in the pasta at all had it not been for the small pieces (2) of shell I came across.

We did the midway swap, and as soon my OZT took a bite of the lobster agnolotti she said that what she had started with, the pappardelle with wild boar, was definitely better. I couldn’t agree more. The pappardelle with wild boar was phenomenal. The pasta was perfect, the sauce rich but not heavy and boar salty and a touch gamey. Delicious. I would like another whole plate of that, please. I polished that off and then dug into the bread to get the rest of the sauce off the plate. This dish made up for the first two.

I wasn’t too bothered with getting dessert but why not? Boy am I glad we did. We split the Panna Cotta with madagascar vanilla bean, and poached quince and it was well worth the calories. The panna cotta was nice and firm and the vanilla tickled my senses before I could even take a bite. The quince, which I realize I know far too little about, was light and a perfect contrast to the dessert.

Overall, I’d go back to Giulia for a drink at the bar but I don’t think I would go back for dinner, at least not until they settle in and for a few months and work out a few of their kinks. Half of our meal was fantastic but the other half was lacking in flavor. The wait staff were a little too attentive which may just be growing pains, but you really don’t have to reach in front of us mid conversation to fill up our water glasses after each sip. I really wanted to love you, Giulia, but you didn’t give me much of a chance.

How did Giulia measure up? 2.5 Spoons

West Bridge, Kendall Sq

Where: West Bridge – 1 Kendall Square, Cambridge, MA

I haven’t spooned anyone in so long! Actually, that’s not true, I have been spooning like its going out of style but just haven’t polished up any drafts to a postable state in a while.

You know its been too long when you are writing about a menu item that no longer exist, as the case here at West Bridge in Kendall Sq. A colleague and I headed across the street from our office to West Bridge for lunch on one of those fall days where the sun was no where to be seen and the chill of the rain goes through you right to the bone. Obviously I got soup. And a glass of prosecco on tap. Just kidding, I would never do that during the work day…

I started with the Sunflower Chowder featuring a Woodbury clam as an ode to the traditional clam chowder. I had emailed Jared at West Bridge who told me that Chef Matthew Gaudet blends sunflowers into a familiar cream-based broth and finishes it with smoked pork shoulder. This chowder was… simply amazing. It was creamy and salty but not heavy. It was so damn good I regretted ordering a meal on top of this as I wanted another bowl. I don’t think a rainy day goes by that I don’t think about this dish. They also feature a larger portion for dinner, thank god.

 

I then got the GLT, which is the item no longer on their menu. The GLT stands for Guanciale (an Italian style of unsmoked bacon), Lettuce and Tomato. Its a glorified BLT, which is probably one of my favorite sandwiches. It came served with thinly sliced fried chips and some pickled veggies. I loved the flavors of this sandwich but the Guanciale was a wee bit too fatty for me. Don’t get me wrong, I love fat, but this was Fatty with a capital F. Even putting aside my concerns about having a heart attack on the spot, I couldn’t eat more than half of it as it was just too much for me. I ended up wrapping up the other half and eating it later on a flight. It did travel well.

Overall, the chowder was phenomenal, the service was great, loved the clean simple design of the restaurant, and they have prosecco on tap (so I hear). The sandwich was good but I don’t think I could get it again (and I don’t have a choice as they don’t have it on the menu anymore anyways) as it was just too fatty for me. I’m happy to have West Bridge just around the corner for many more lunches, dinners, and after work libations.

How did West Bridge measure up? 3.75 Spoons!

Amelias Trattoria, Kendall Sq

Amelia’s Trattoria – 111 Harvard Street ,  Cambridge, MA

Girls night!! I had really been looking forward to this particular girls night out with some of my favorite women in development and was excited to try Amelia’s Trattoria, which happened to be just a couple blocks from my new office. Perfect.

Amelia’s is tucked away on Harvard Street near Kendall Sq just behind Tech Sq. Its unlikely that you would find it just wandering around which is what contributes to the fact that you can actually get a table easily. We made a reservation and trickled in slowly just after. We were promptly seated and had had a very patient waiter as we mulled over the menu while waiting for our party to arrive. The chef even agreed to make us bruschetta even though it wasn’t on the dinner menu.

So we started with the Bruschetta -Grilled foccacia bread, marinated tomatoes, fresh basil & red onion. Personally, I didn’t love this dish. I thought the bread was a little hard and a little too big (hence making it messy). The marinated tomatoes were delicious though, I could eat that right off the plate – who needs bread anyways?

We then split two dishes to get more variety for our buck. We started with the Baby Spinach Salad – Baby spinach, caramelized balsamic shallots, crispy pancetta & Vermont goat cheese. Re-read that. I mean, can it get any better than that combination? This salad was delicious – salty, crispy, tart, and creamy.

We then shared a Lobster Ravioli dish which was one of Amelia’s daily specials that night. If I can give Amelia’s one piece of unsolicited advice it would be to get this item on the menu permanently. It was delicious. The raviolis were tender and meaty and the sauce creamy and bursting with flavor. I loved how saucy it was as there was just enough leftover for me to mop up with some bread. Its a keeper.

Overall, I was impressed with the ravioli and salad dishes but a little let down by our starter. Service was great and I would recommend Amelia’s for lunch, dinner, groups, or a date. The restaurant is small, giving it a cozy feel, and I can imagine sitting by the window watching snow fall with a big hot plate of pasta. I’ll be back.

How did Amelia’s Trattoria measure up? 3.25 Spoons!

 

Rialto, Harvard Sq

Where: Rialto, One Bennett Street, Cambridge, MA
When: September, 2012

During my summertime love affair with oysters I was looking to get them any way possible. I didn’t care where or who they came from. I didn’t care if they were local or foreign. I just wanted as many as I could as quickly as possible.

During my quest to eat as many oyster as possible I came across Riato’s Monday night $1 oyster special. TMM! (Tell me more!).

On my next free Monday evening I dragged a friend of mine to Rialto to check this steal out. The bar, expectedly, was jam packed but we found a little table still considered in the bar area (a much nicer spot if you ask me). Let me walk you through my journey…

We started with a dozen oysters. Then got another dozen oysters. Then considered getting another dozen oysters but thought we should try something else. I couldn’t tell you what kind of oysters these were honestly. I know they weren’t wellfleets or kumamotos, two of my favorites, but any good $1 oyster makes a close second favorite.

Two drinks in we decided we needed something more substantial. We ordered the Crispy friend calamari with pickled pepper, lemon and evoo. These were lightly friend and not too greasy and the aoili it was served with was worthy just on its own. I’d get the calamari again but they weren’t anything particularly special. Maybe that’s a good thing though, somethings you don’t want to get too fancy with.

Next, hold your breath, we got the Parmesan fries. I just accidentally wrote friend and, yes, they are my friends and will be yours too. These are the most delicious fries I have had in years. I was doing that thing where I would grab three at a time but try to pretend there was just one as I didn’t want to look like I was taking more than my share, which I totally was. I was hoping my dinner date would go use the bathroom so that I could inhale them without the guilt. No such luck. I did, proudly, polish off this plate with little help.

Overall, you can’t beat $1 oysters. The bar was packed so I felt lucky to get a seat but otherwise its a risk. The calamari was good enough but they were blown out of the water by the fries. What really topped off the evening for me was when Jody Adams, the head chef, sat behind me to say hello to some friends. I was starstuck and just sat there with a silly grin on my face, which you can see here. I must get back for a full dinner sometime soon.

How did Rialto measure up? 4.5 Spoons!

Cambridge Common, Harvard Sq

Where: Cambridge Common– 1667 Massachusetts Avenue, Cambridge MA 02138
When: September 2012

I used to be a brunch person going almost every weekend -t was my Sunday equivalent of church. I would roll out of bed, put on my Sunday worst (sweatshirt, sneaks, ponytail) and head down to Sound Bites around the corner for something delicious and typically greasy. This would usually be followed by a few hours on the sofa watching mind numbing tv as I was too full to do anything else. Why did I stop, right?

Well, I moved to a different part of town but I still jump at the chance to go out for brunch so was thrilled when a friend was in town at the last minute and suggested meeting up on Sunday morning. In shorts, tees and ponytails we headed to Cambridge Common to check out their brunch menu. We sat outside in the sunshine which was just perfect. They had me at Breakfast B.L.T.

The Breakfast B.L.T. comes with applewood smoked bacon, fried egg, avocado, baby spinach, and tomato with chipotle mayo on multi-grain toast and is served with home fries and fresh fruit. The combination of the salty bacon and egg with the buttery avocado and spicy mayo is out of this world. It’s a good sized sandwich but doesn’t leave you feeling like you just ate a whole cow. The home fries were good as well – nice and crispy.

Overall, service was good and we got plenty of coffee refills (perhaps too many even). We were happy to able to sit outside as its a little dark indoors (great for nighttime though). Food was crave worthy. I’ll be back, as I always am.

How did Cambridge Common measure up? 3.75 Spoons!

Strega Waterfront, Seaport

Where: Strega – One Marina Park Drive (56 Northern Ave), Boston MA
When: July 2012

I rarely head to the Seaport district so jumped at the chance to check out Strega Waterfront (not to be confused with Strega in the North End) on a gorgeous Boston summer night. We headed down there with a group after work and were promptly, thanks to a reservation, seated outside. So nice to be able to sit outside with a view of the water while eating.

We started with a bottle of wine (which led to a few more) and one of the specials which was like the Fritto di Calamari, lightly deep-fried fresh calamari served with marinara sauce, but with a variety of seafood. This dish was good but could have been a little crisper, they were a little on the soft side for me. It was also a bit messy looking. We also, unfortunately found a hair in the dish, so pointed it out to our waiter who quickly replaced it. I’d like to think it belonged to someone at the table but that’s unlikely.

I then split a salad and main dish. For the salad we got the La Strega Salad which is baby arugula, grapefruit, walnuts and shaved parmigiano cheese in a citrus vinaigrette. The salad was light but bursting with citrus flavor, the perfect dish for sitting outside on a warm summer night.

Now, for the pièce de résistance, the Ravioli Aragosta – Lobster filled ravioli finished in a crabmeat cream sauce. OH MY. I could have eaten the entire plate and then some but was grateful to be sharing as these little pillows are decadent. The sauce, which was delicate but rich, was probably my favorite part. I’d put that sauce on anything. Pass the bread please.

Overall, Strega is a great spot for sitting on the water as well as people watching. The service was good and ravioli blew my socks off. I wasn’t impressed with our starter, especially with that rogue hair which really brought my review down. Good spot for families or groups of friends.

How did Strega Waterfront measure up? 3 Spoons!

Olivia’s by the Sea, Gloucester

Where: Olivia’s by the Sea– 78 Thatcher Road, Gloucester, MA 01930
When: July, 2012

Summer in New England, at least for me,  is all about spending time near, on, or in the water. Whether that be on a boat, island, dock or beach there’s just something about breathing in that salty air and having the sun beating down on me that puts me in the best of moods. I wasn’t going to let my broken foot keep me from the beach. I was that girl hobbling along the beach in my bikini and air cast. Keeping it classy.

That being said, whats the best way to wrap up a day at the beach? Seafood, and lots of it.

This particular beach trip to Crane’s Beach landed us at Olivia’s by the Sea afterwards for a late lunch. Olivia’s is casual (you can comfortably go in your beach cover up) but still clean and nice. No frills. The menu, which is extensive, has almost anything you can think of from pasta to sandwiches to fried seafood plates. We opted for the Fisherman’s Platter  which came with fish, shrimp, calamari, and scallops (which we substituted more fish for as I’m allergic) , topped with some onion rings. First of all, this platter should be shared between three people, not two. Its huge. Everything was delicious, as fried food tends to be, and not too greasy or heavy. It was a good end to a beach day.

Overall, Olivia’s by the Sea has decent service, is clean, and good standard beach fare. There wasn’t anything about Olivia’s that struck me as special or makes me want to rush back though, it lacks  certain charm. I wouldn’t not go back, I just wouldn’t seek it out.

How did Olivia’s by the Seat measure up? 2.75 Spoons!

Area Four, Kendall Sq – Revisited

Where: Area Four – 500 Technology Square Cambridge, MA 02139
When: July, 2012

Its really not easy working right across the street from Area Four. Its constantly calling my name tempting me to come over for lunch and, more often then not, cocktails. Like I need that extra temptation…

I’ve been to Area Four many times but this particular trip was worthy of another post. This is the first time I had been this summer so we were able to snag a table outside on the patio. I tried the Sparkling Malbec which was really lovely, especially on a warm summer day. It was much like a Rose – light, refreshing and not too sweet. After cocktails we started with their famous Garlic Knots which are smothered in garlic, pecorino and gremolata. These are amazing and worth all the calories – I promise.

For pizzas I decided to split one of the specials, on the bottom, with a friend but as soon as I saw the Mushroom and Fontina pizza come out for our other friend I knew I had to get in on that.  I ended up abandoning my pizza and eating half of hers as it was just that good. Thank goodness for generous friends. Typically I am not a huge fan on fontina but it just went so well with the mushrooms. The saltiness of the pecorino on top was perfectly balanced with the gremolata, which I am turning into a huge fan of. I think I have been back to Area Four for the Mushroom Fontina pizza twice since this trip. Do it.

Garlic Knots

The Mushroom Fontina pizza is on the top and one of the specials is on the bottom (sorry, what is is has escaped me as my mind went blank after trying the Mushroom Fontina one!)

If you are in the area, try to make it to Area our for some of their homemade ice cream that they pop up on the sidewalk. I recently had the Peanut Butter and it was pure heaven. Oh, and don’t even get me started on their croissants! My heart and brain are grateful to Area Four but my waistline… not so much.

How did Area Four measure up? 4.5 Spoons!